Makaku
was a notorious criminal and Factory bounty. One of Desty Nova's patients, he was Alita's first significant adversary. Appearance Makaku had a varied appearance depending on what role he was fulfilling. He was originally fully human, being a fair skinned boy with light coloured bushy hair wearing a light coloured tee shirt. After he was severely burned with a flamethrower by a pair of Scrapyard punks his body began to decay in the fetid environment of the Scrapyard sewers. Following his rescued by Desty Nova, Makaku received the Maggot Body, which reflected his innermost desires. It featured a very large head topped with a spike and was attached to a long, snakelike cyborg body that terminated in a spiked tail. The first cyborg that he was shown to have taken over was a large body over which he normally wore a robe that also obscured his face. After this body was destroyed, he cobbled together a makeshift body using Izuchi's limbs, using a head that he had stolen as a mask to hide his face and covering himself with a white robe. The last body that he possessed was the Power Body, a customized competition body for the Coliseum. In Gunnm: Martian Memory Makaku's head is flesh coloured and his teeth are in a permanent grin. His first body has a silver torso and wears dark blue-green jeans. The Power Body is a dark grey with its outfit a light yellow with a black crosshatch pattern, while the helmet has bright yellow horizontal horns. BAA01 236 Makaku as a boy.jpg|Makaku as a young boy in Battle 7. BAA01 50 Makaku.jpg|Makaku in his first cyborg body in Battle 2. BAA01 75 Maggot Body.jpg|The Maggot Body in Battle 3. BAA01 110 Makaku.jpg|Makaku in his improvised body in Battle 4. BAA01 136 Makaku.jpg|Makaku in the Power Body. Personality Makaku's life was profoundly changed by his near death in the Scrapyard sewers, and as much as his own death he feared that his existence would go unnoticed. When he thus acquired the Maggot Body and was able to venture to the surface, he used its destructive capabilities to continuously assure himself that he was alive and was doing something. He tried to relieve the residual pain from his burns by obtaining the s from human or dog brains, but as the pain never went away this had turned into an endless cycle. Makaku's life essentially had remained the same ever since he lay dying in the sewers with no one paying significant attention to him until Alita appeared and took him seriously by fighting him. Despite the role that Daisuke Ido had played in defeating him, he completely ignored him at Bar Kansas, focusing on Alita instead. Relationships .]] Ironically, the closest relationship that Makaku developed was with Alita, his greatest adversary. Driven by his need to have his existence acknowledged, even destructively, he initially sought not to kill her outright after obtaining the Power Body, but to keep her alive in the form of a living pendant that he planned to wear. However her protective attitude towards Koyomi, which enraged him since he had always experienced rejection, drove him to attempt to kill her. This was so strong that he even attempted to commit double suicide with Alita. In the end, his wish to be acknowledged and taken seriously was finally met by his defeat at her hands, and he died at peace with himself. Although he partnered with Izuchi, Makaku's interactions with him were limited to Izuchi's procurement of dog brains to feed his boss' endorphin addiction. Following Izuchi's death Makaku even used his limbs later to cobble together a makeshift body that he used to access the Coliseum. He did not develop a deeper relationship with Desty Nova other than that of patient-doctor as he never saw Nova again after receiving the Maggot Body. Abilities Makaku's abilities were closely tied to the capabilities of the Maggot Body and whatever cyborg bodies he had taken over. The Maggot Body itself was very fast and specially adapted to hijack and take over larger bodies, with Makaku's head appearing where the previous owner's was. Other than his ability to grab a target with the body, its only weapon was a long head spike that could be fired just once. The lack of any limbs was a drawback, but for most of his time in the Maggot Body this was not an issue for Makaku. His first cyborg body did not have any distinctive characteristics other than its massive size and strength. The Power Body which he took over from Kinuba featured five grind cutters built into one arm and a computer called the Boarhead that was built into the waist. It also possessed raw power and strength due to its size, but was especially vulnerable after the grind cutters were disabled. Bodies Makaku is shown in four different bodies, but likely possessed many more due to his use of the Maggot Body to take over other cyborg bodies. Human body Originally born as a human, Makaku had lived in the Scrapyard sewers all his life, never having previously known what life was like on the surface. He was severely burned with a flamethrower in ES 574Gunnm LO History timeline. and nearly died as his injuries began to rot from the putrid environment. Although he was saved by Desty Nova, his human body had to be discarded. Maggot Body The Maggot Body was given to Makaku by Nova after he was rescued. A customized cyborg body that reflected Makaku's innermost desires, it was specifically adapted to take over larger bodies. Despite being transplanted into the Maggot Body, Makaku never lost the residual pain that he suffered from being burned and sought s as painkillers, which he got from either human or dog brains. First cyborg body This was a large body that Makaku was first seen in and did not have any special characteristics apart from its size and strength. Its previous owner's intelligence impacted Makaku, as he was not very articulate while in it. After it was destroyed he was again able to speak more expressively. Makeshift body After he escaped from Alita and Daisuke Ido, Makaku somehow created a disguise in the form of Izuchi's limbs, a cape, and a child cyborg's head which he used as a mask. He used it to watch a Coliseum bout that Kinuba participated in and afterwards gain access to a waiting room that the champion retired to. It was destroyed when Makaku revealed his true intentions and Kinuba fired a grind cutter at it. Power Body The Power Body was a custom body built for Kinuba, the Coliseum champion. It was large, but not the largest competitive body, as Zaariki was larger. The main armament was five grind cutters built into one arm and it had a combat computer in its waist known as the Boarhead. History In ES 574Gunnm LO History timeline. Makaku was living in the Scrapyard sewers, having never been to the surface. Attracted by the life outside, he was peering through a sewer grate when he caught the attention of a pair of residents, one of whom attacked him with a flamethrower. Although he was able to escape, he sustained severe burns which became infected and began to rot. He succumbed to his wounds, but was found by Desty Nova, who resuscitated him and offered to give him a new body as a present that would mirror the "desire that lies hidden at the bottom of your heart." Makaku was subsequently "mad with joy" at his new body and used it to wreak terror on the surface.Battle 7 He would take over larger cyborg bodies and use them to obtain dog or human brains to get the s, which he needed to soothe the residual pain from his injuries that never went away. Despite being put on the bounty list, he was a dangerous opponent, killing at least ten hunter-warriors and striking fear into the rest, deterring them from pursuing him.Battle 4 At some point he met Izuchi, who was himself a bounty and became his lackey. Izuchi's job was to procure dog brains for his boss but he did not mind the arrangement as it kept him safe from hunter-warriors. Plot .]] Three years later Makaku and Izuchi happened across Master and Duke Fang in a market. Izuchi tried to procure Duke Fang's brain but was refused. Makaku was unable to get his endorphin fix in time and went on a rampage, grabbing random people nearby and cracking their heads open to suck their brains out. Later that night Izuchi was hunting stray dogs while Makaku fed on another victim. Alita, who was with Daisuke Ido but had gone off by herself, came across him and decided to challenge him despite just having her memories of Panzer Kunst reawakened. Although he threw his victim's body at her, she dodged and severed his right arms. Despite this he was able to tear through her own body with the other. Controlling her fall, Alita managed to drive her remaining arm into Makaku's eye, but was caught by Makaku as she fell. He attempted to crack her head open to suck her brain out, but Ido happened on the scene and destroyed Makaku's body with the rocket hammer. However Makaku disengaged the Maggot Body and surprised Ido, firing his head spike to impale him through the stomach. After vowing revenge on Ido and Alita, Makaku escaped into the sewers. He later returned to the scene of the fight to put together a makeshift body using Izuchi's limbs which he used to watch a Coliseum bout that Kinuba participated in. Afterwards he was able to gain access to the champion in a waiting room and talked to him about the Power Body. After learning more about it, Makaku unmasked himself and threatened to steal it. Although Kinuba fired a grind cutter at him, he quickly evaded the attack and was able to slither underneath Kinuba's cape and start to take the Power Body over. Kinuba tried to kill himself with the grind cutters, but Makaku gained enough control to make Kinuba sever his own head instead, taking over the body. .]] Makaku then tracked Alita to Bar Kansas, where he burst through a wall to get in. He was mistaken to be Kinuba by Reptile, one of the hunter-warriors present who was a Kinuba fan. In response to an autograph request, Makaku used a grind cutter to carve his own name on Reptile's back. The cuts killed Reptile and allowed Makaku to catch his brain with his tongue and devour it, and he revealed himself for who he really was. However he did not attack Alita right away, first probing her body with an electronic scan and revealing that he planned to capture and keep her alive in the form of a living pendant that he would wear around his neck. After he noticed Koyomi, Makaku revealed that his life had begun with pain and terror, and that he believed that these could be overcome by continuously subjecting others to these feelings, thus alleviating his own suffering. Although he fired a grind cutter at Alita but stopped it short to just tap her on the head, she did not flinch, provoking him to fire to more at her that eventually threw her into a wall. He then seized Koyomi, punched a massive hole in the floor of the bar with his foot, and jumped through to the sewers. Here Makaku laid a trap by placing Koyomi at a spot where he knew that the sewage from the surface would be emptied. His initial ambush was detected and Alita was able to save Koyomi before he killed her. Before Makaku could take advantage of her handicap, Duke Fang, who had also followed him into the sewers, burst from a nearby pipe and landed on his face, ripping out the arm from Alita's prior body that had been lodged in his eye. Alita handed off Koyomi to the dog while Makaku was distracted and used her Plasma Jet to destroy Makaku's hand when he tried to prevent Duke Fang from escaping with Koyomi. After having the Boarhead analyze Alita's capabilities, Makaku fired all five grind cutters at her, but his unbalanced weight threw off his aim as he was unable to withstand the recoil. Alita slid along his arm before landing on top of his head. However before she could deliver a killing blow, the tanks above opened and poured out a torrent of sewage. Makaku positioned himself so that the current would brace him to fire at Alita, who could not maneuver. However his arm then exploded from the incisions that she had cut into its actuators when she slid along it, leaving him armless. After throwing him to the ground, Alita used plasma to destroy the Power Body. Makaku was able to escape just before it exploded and burrowed into the ground to surprise her by bursting from beneath her to wrap her with his body, revealing that they were above a tank of alloy and that a cloud of had been released. If ignited, this would destroy the cavern they were in. In response, Alita started to tear apart his body apart and was about to finish Makaku off when she realized that he had been mortally wounded by the Power Body's explosion. However he was intent on committing double suicide with Alita and used the sparks generated by his damaged tail to ignite the hydrogen. They both survived, as Alita was able to hold back the resulting fires with an electromagnetic field. Holding Makaku's head with her feet as they floated within the flames, she asked him about his past and he revealed how he had obtained the body. Following his last words that his wish had at last come true after meeting her, Makaku was consumed by the flames. Years later after Alita was trapped in Desty Nova's Ouroboros Program, Makaku was one of her prior opponents that she anticipated would appear.Battle 49 Last Order Makaku was one of the many characters from Alita's past shown when Melchizedek reached out to her consciousness after her ego was shattered and her Imaginos Body dissolved following Super Nova's Seca attack.Phase 62 - Melchizedek calls out to Alita's fading consciousness. Other appearances Makaku appears in Gunnm: Martian Memory, although the details of his Maggot Body are not shown. He appears only in his first cyborg body then in in the Power Body. He later appears when Gally is trapped in a dream sequence created by the Ouroboros Program. In the OVA, Grewcica is an amalgamation of both Makaku and Kinuba from the manga, being the former Coliseum champion who has become a bounty due to his brain-eating habit. References Category:Battle Angel Alita characters Category:Cyborgs Category:Males Category:Scrapyard residents Category:Factory bounties Category:Gunnm: Martian Memory characters